we did, bob. we did. got it. >>> paul o'neill may be best known as secretary of the treasury under president george w. bush, but it's a difficult call he made years before that that altered the course of a major american company and literally saved lives in the process. >> i can't say to you, you know, this is all one group or all another group. >> in 1987 o'neill became ceo of one of the largest and oldest aluminum companies in the world, alcoa. on the eve of its centennial, the storied corporation was in trouble. inefficient, rapid expansion had left profits dwindling and moral waning. putting o'neill in charge was a big change. in nearly 100 years, alcoa had never hired an out of house ceo. someone who had not climbed through the ranks of the tightly-knit management system and who was not well-versed in metal making. the company was in for a surprise with the first decision o'neill made. executives and shareholders thought it was bizarre, unorthodox, and indifferent to the bottom line. so what was that